By: Alejandra Vargas

In recent years, the services market has had an upward trend, registering a growth of 1.82% during 2019, this leads companies of both tangible and intangible goods to innovate in their offer by providing complementary services that add value for the client and give them a competitive advantage that is difficult to replicate.

Faced with this situation, the customer becomes increasingly demanding. He expects suppliers that offer something different from the rest, as well as strategic alliances that offer him a service that adds value to his work.

That is why, for some years to date, sales pitches have taken hold in which a potential supplier does not take it for granted that the project will be theirs, but must put all their effort to demonstrate in a few minutes why it is the best option for the customer.

In case you or your company do not consider a sales pitch as an opportunity, it is a good time for you to rethink what you are offering, strengthen your sales team and transmit security regarding the service they offer, letting them know by what is unique and better than all the others and, therefore, they have all the possibilities in favor to win. To get there, it is first necessary to know and understand why your service is relevant, different, unmatched and transcendent for the potential customer.

At ACSI Research, more than 3,000 studies of various lines have been conducted to help clients understand their strengths and consolidate their offering to the market. Whether they are customers or suppliers, it is essential that companies know their value propositions and show it abroad.

The new generations, do you prefer to be a supplier or a customer?

Current generations aspire to be entrepreneurs immediately after graduating from their professional careers and prefer to be service providers rather than producers of goods.

In addition to this, it can be observed that the new generations do not have a great appreciation for sales, which is a contradiction. It is necessary to begin to understand sales as a necessary activity since it is the only way in which we can achieve links with other companies and therefore, their growth. Whatever the professional future of the new generations, it must be understood that well-developed sales skills and techniques will determine a large part of the success of companies.

Is it easier to be a customer or supplier?

Being a customer, without a doubt, gives an apparently advantageous position since it is who is going to be the “judge” in a sales pitch. First, he will decide who can participate, later he will put them to the test to know who is the best and finally he will decide who will be his ally. It sounds simple, but if we analyze the process of selecting a client’s suppliers, we must sensitize ourselves to the pressure they experience.

Being a client implies having the pressure to choose the right supplier since excellent results must be given and almost always, at the lowest cost.

It may seem unbelievable in a world where providers are struggling to get customers, but there will be providers who would rather be out of business than undercut their services. This position is not necessarily incorrect since providers must know and value what they offer so much as to pass it on to the customer.

Undoubtedly these are challenges that the supplier has to overcome, but he also has more flexibility in his work.

He has space for creativity in the offer he gives to the client, he regularly has less bureaucratic processes and he lives the adrenaline of seeking to achieve his goals. In addition, you are fortunate to always meet new potential clients, which becomes an important networking. Their work may consist of dinners and meetings that, while helping to close the deal, also allow for fun.

The supplier must apply all their creativity in their offer so that it is relevant to the potential customer. Having a clear and well-founded offer of value is vital, but above all knowing how to communicate clearly and impressively. The sale promise must be closely related to the values that are breathed in the company, they must be transmitted in each of the activities that are done or are not done. From the lowest level of the organization to the highest. In this way the client will perceive it as a strength giving an advantage over other possible suppliers.

The customer is always right?

It must be understood that clients and suppliers have the same capacity and the same right to establish fair conditions that favor long-term relationships with mutual benefit.

Nowadays suppliers have also earned the “right” to respect and value their offer and seek worthy customers. This right will be strengthened as suppliers offer differentiated and difficult-to-replicate services and as we all understand the value of sales.

This new ideology puts both customers and suppliers on the same level of competition. Both must convey how valuable it is to work with and for them. In this way the relationship will be one of respect and equality.

Following this line, little by little we will see fewer suppliers that are willing to give too low prices in order to win a customer and likewise, we will see customers who are willing to pay a fair price for the value of the service they are going to receive.

How to play on the same court?

Those of us who have been fortunate enough to be in both positions know the challenges and learnings that each one implies. Both positions are equally enriching and necessary for the economy. Therefore, both customers and suppliers must strengthen their offering and reputation by providing and paying fair prices, speaking clearly, and establishing agreements that enable win-win relationships.

Ultimately, this ideology of equality will allow industries to grow and benefit from having a better court to play on.